Retirement and Investments

Nurturing your nest egg for your financial future.

Deposit Promise

IRAs

CD Laddering

Weekly CS Wilson Update

CS Wilson

Your Deposits Are Safe and Secure
ECU, your savings are federally insured by the U.S. Government through the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA). NCUA insures your individual savings accounts up to a maximum of $250,000, regardless of the number of individual accounts you may have.

Effective April 1, 2006, NCUA has announced that they will now insure IRA deposits up to an additional $250,000 instead of $100,000. Joint, individual, retirement, and other account relationships are insured separately. To view NCUA Deposit Booklet click here.

In addition to NCUA, Excess Share Insurance (ESI) provides an additional $250,000 of savings coverage to qualifying accounts. ESI is a licensed property and casualty insurance company. Members exceeding the maximum level of coverage provided by the NCUA are also insured up to an additional $250,000 by ESI. For example, if a member has a savings account, checking account and certificate of deposit at ECU that when added together totals $300,000. The first $250,000 is insured by NCUA with the remaining insured by ESI.

INDIVIDUAL RETIREMENT ACCOUNTS (IRAS): Education Credit Union is your financial partner for life, so there’s no better place to start planning for your retirement years. Choose a Traditional IRA or a Roth IRA. Each earns competitive interest rates, requires no additional set-up fee or a maintenance fee and provides all the tax advantages you need. Deposits may be tax deductible, and your investment grows with tax deferred interest. You can open an IRA with us for as little a $50.

At the most basic level, by “laddering” your CDs, you avoid investing all of your money at a low rate of return. You increase liquidity because you are never more than one year from a portion of your money at any time.

Here’s how it works. You take an amount of money to the bank—for math’s sake we are going to say $5000. You invest $1000 of that money into a 1 year CD, $1000 in a 2 year CD, $1000 in a 3 year CD, etc. Each CD represents a rung of the ladder.

At the end of the first year, when the first CD matures, you take that money and re-invest it in a 5 year CD. Now you again have 5 CDs with the next one maturing in one year. At the end of each year, you invest the full amount of the matured CD into a new 5 year CD.

By investing in multiple smaller CDs, the investor has less risk of interest rate swings because there is less money invested in each CD. The rewards are higher in the end as well, and the flow of income is steadier because 1/5 of the investor’s assets are liquid at the end of each year.

Getting on Track with Personal Finances

By Cathy Wilson, CFP®, AIF®

Have you determined what you want your money to achieve for you and your family over the course of your lifetime? That begins with establishing specific goals and maintaining a clear picture of where you are at any given time along the path toward your goals. Below are six things you need to know to help you remain on track at each stage of your financial journey.

Know how much you’re making, what you’re spending and what you owe. A budget is an important tool for tracking how much money is coming in and how much is going out on a monthly or annual basis. If you’re incurring debt on a regular basis, it’s likely that you’re over spending or you’ve encountered a rocky patch due to unforeseen medical bills, a job loss or other circumstances. Use your budget to help prioritize and manage spending.

Know that all decisions have an opportunity cost. Every financial decision from a $3 cup of coffee to $30,000 car involves a tradeoff. Do you spend the money now on something you want but don’t need, or do you save it? Every decision influences your ability to maintain today’s lifestyle goals and tomorrow’s income needs.

Know your financial goals and your time frame for reaching each goal. The likelihood of reaching your goals depends in part on how well-defined they are and when you plan to achieve them. It’s hard to build a solid plan around a goal “to retire someday” vs. a more finite goal such as, “I want to retire in 7 years and move closer to my children and grandchildren.” Be specific.

Know your risk tolerance and the asset allocation that is appropriate for you. Your investment portfolio can help you move closer to your goals but taking on too much or too little risk can sabotage your efforts. C.S. Wilson & Associates, Inc. can structure an investment portfolio aligned with your goals, time frame and tolerance for risk to help you appropriately allocate your assets in a manner that inspires confidence.

Know where to get the help you need. The more you know about your finances, the more likely you are to make clear, confident decisions that support your goals. However, managing your finances can be time-consuming. And the more you accumulate, the more complex your needs tend to become over time. Cathy Wilson, CFP®, AIF® is available to meet with you to help you develop a plan.

Securities and Advisory Services offered through Cetera Advisors LLC, Member FINRA/SIPC
Cetera is under separate ownership from any other entity. Investments are: Not NCUA insured, not a deposit, not Education Credit Union guaranteed, not insured by any government agency, may lose value.

C.S. Wilson & AssociatesEducation Credit Union and C.S. Wilson & Associates, Inc. have teamed up to provide financial services for all of the members. Cathy Wilson, CFP is here to help members strive to pursue their financial goals.

They have two locations in Amarillo:
6201 Hillside (inside the Hillside Branch) 806-322-1250
2324 Lakeview 806-352-9251

Cathy Wilson, CFP, established C.S. Wilson & Associates, Inc. Financial Advisors over 30 years ago. She is passionate about providing all of her clients with caring, independent, and practical financial guidance. This includes establishing and monitoring financial strategies for retirement planning, estate planning, and investment planning. Her number-one priority is to serve her clients with the utmost integrity, trust, and respect.

Sally Miller, Executive Assistant, joined the firm in 2007, after teaching for 33 years. Sally is in charge of client relationships and compliance. She also coordinates the day-to-day operations of the office and loves interacting and helping our clients with all of their needs. Her enthusiasm and love of life make her a favorite with all of our clients!

Securities and Advisory Services offered through Cetera Advisors LLC, Member FINRA/SIPC
Cetera is under separate ownership from any other entity. Investments are: Not NCUA insured, not a deposit, not Education Credit Union guaranteed, not insured by any government agency, may lose value.

Services:

Education Credit Union is committed to serving all persons within our field of membership, including those with disabilities. We strive to make not only our physical branches accessible, but also to conform to WCAG 2.0 guidelines for website accessibility. Our efforts are ongoing including frequent testing and updates to improve accessibility.Should you have any problems accessing our branches or website, please call us at 1-800-687-8144 so that we may promptly assist you and remedy any accessibility concerns.

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